Leyna: Perfect Together
by Fluff-is-awesome
Summary: Leo Valdez is the only character who doesn't have a girl, and I am almost positive that Reyna was created for him. This is how I see their relationship and how they realize that they are perfect for each other.
1. Chapter 1

Leo POV:

After the Argo 2 had landed and the Greeks had been accepted into Camp Jupiter, Leo had immediately noticed the girl in the toga with the long dark hair. Not because she was gorgeous (which she absolutely was), and not because she was the obvious leader (which she also, clearly was). Leo noticed her because she let out a cold, serious intensity that she had mastered in order to mask all of her true feelings. He knew all about hiding feelings. He had mastered that trick quite well himself, but he used sly remarks and laughs as his cover. Not only could Leo detect her hard shield, but he could also see right through it.

Jason had introduced her to Leo as Reyna. He thought that was a very fitting name, meaning "queen" in Spanish. Reyna's face made it clear that she was not crazy about Leo's fun personality, but her eyes also told him that she was curious to know more about him.

Reyna was fearless. She clearly had a lot of power at camp, and although she wasn't especially tall, she was very good at holding her power. She gave strong, clear orders, like she was in the military. Leo later found out that she was the daughter of Bellona, the Roman goddess of war, which made sense with her personality.

Leo was determined to find out more about this girl, so after dinner he went and sat down with her by the campfire.

"So you're Reyna," he said, trying to make light conversation, "Queen of camp, eh?"

She didn't even look at him. "You could say that," she said with no emotion. He thought she might say more, but she just stared into the fire with so much intensity, that Leo thought she was going to put it out by just thinking about it. Leo didn't know if that was possible, but in the world of demigods, you never know.

Leo figured the only way to get through to this girl was to be direct. "Why are you so serious all the time?" he asked her, "Do you ever get a break?"

She glared at him and shot back, "Why do you joke all the time? Do you even know what it means to be serious? Do you even know _how_ to be serious?"

That one burned. "Oh I know about serious Reyna," Leo told her looking down at his cursed hands, "I know all about serious."

He could feel her staring at him with just as much intensity as she did the fire. He figured he should probably keep talking. "But really, you work so hard all day long, I think you deserve a little break," Leo pulled out a deck of playing cards from his tool belt. "Do you know how to play War?" he asked her.

Reyna looked hesitant, but he turned to face her and began setting up the cards in between them. "Come on, it's fun!" She sighed but reluctantly turned to play. Leo explained the rules to her. "I'm warning you, I've been playing this game since I was 3 years old, so I'm pretty darn good," he smiled at her.

"You think," she said, looking determined to beat him in his all-time favorite card game. _Score_, Leo thought.

Leo had to admit, Reyna had caught on better than he had expected. Leo had never played against someone who had so much determination, but that didn't stop him from winning the first two games. They were in the middle of the third game when Reyna put down her last card. "Ha!" she said, "I win!"

She had indeed won, Leo realized as he looked at his cards. He sighed and gave her his best puppy-dog face. "Rematch?" he asked pleadingly.

Then Reyna did the one thing he least expected.

She laughed. Hard.

Leo stared at her as she threw her head back and let out the most incredible laugh he had ever heard. It was the sound of pure joy and happiness. He wondered if she had ever laughed like that before.

Reyna saw him staring at her and stopped laughing. "Wh- what?" she asked, catching her breath.

Leo realized he was still staring and shook his head. "Nothing, I just- your laugh- it's amazing," he said smiling at her.

She suddenly looked self-conscious. "Oh- um- thanks," she said, embarrassed. There was an uncomfortable pause. "Um... maybe I should go..." she said as she started to get up.

"No!" Leo said without thinking. He thought he sounded a little too eager, but if he knew anything at that moment it was that he wasn't ready for her to leave yet. "I mean, if you have to go you can, I don't want to stop you if you have to go, but I just... I was having fun... It would be nice if... you stayed?" he asked, trying to make it seem not so desperate but epically failing.

She studied him and he held her intense gaze. "Okay," she finally said sitting back down.

Another awkward pause. Leo realized as much as he wanted her to stay, he didn't know what to say to her now that she had agreed. Luckily he didn't have to worry for long, because it was Reyna who spoke.

"Leo," she began, with hesitant curiosity in her voice, "I heard that you were a... a Fire Guy? Is that... true?"

He solemnly nodded and looked back down at his cursed hands again. There was something about Reyna that made him feel like he could trust her. Like he could be honest with her.

"Can I... see?" she asked kindly. Leo looked up at her and saw that although the intensity in her eyes was still there, they were also softer and more... genuine somehow.

Leo held up his hand with the palm facing up so she could see it. He concentrated, and then there were hot red flames dancing along his palm. She reached out to touch it and he took in a breath. She paused.

"May I?" she asked. Leo nodded and focused on controlling the glowing flame as she touched his palm. Her hand was soft against his and very gentle. He didn't know exactly what he had been expecting, but it felt good. He made sure to keep the flame steady in the dark as she traced around his hand.

"It's beautiful," she whispered in awe.

That was so not what Leo was expecting her to say at all. He put out the flame and pulled his hand away. _Beautiful?_ he thought. _She thought fire was beautiful?_

"I'm sorry!" she was saying, "Did I do something wrong? I'm sorry! I-"

"No no," Leo told her, "No I just... I was afraid I had hurt you." he said lamely.

"You weren't going to hurt me," Reyna said quietly. They were silent again and the fire crackled. "I should go," she finally said. She got up and began walking away, but stopped abruptly turning around. "I had fun tonight," she said to him, "Thank you." And she headed back to the praetor's cabin.


	2. Chapter 2

Reyna POV:

Reyna didn't know what to think. She had _fun_. Roman praetors did _not_ have fun. As she walked back to her cabin, she realized that she had never felt so relaxed and happy in her whole time at camp. And it felt _good_. _No_, Reyna tried to convince herself,_ it's was a waste of time, a detour from her job as a leader, a distraction_. But she couldn't help herself. She felt really good. She felt light and happy. She felt like _herself_.

Reyna paused at her front door. "You deserve a break," Leo had told her. Leo. Leo made her happy. She suddenly felt an urge to go back to him and play another card game. _No_, Reyna convinced herself again as she opened the door to her cabin, _you have work to do_.

As she sat down at her desk, she realized that she had a clear head, clearer than before. She got a ton of work done in that next hour. She'd never admit it to him, but Leo was right about taking a break. She was tempted to take breaks like that more often. As she organized her papers on her desk, she began wondering about Leo. There was a lot more to that kid than he let across. Reyna's first impression of him was that he had a funny sense of humor and was your classic class clown. The other thing she noticed was the way his hands never stopped moving, and he always had something to fiddle with. But she could also tell he was hiding something, something more... serious.

She hid things too, Reyna realized. Her mind filled with curiosity about this Greek son of Hephaestus. She wanted to know more about him. _Maybe we're more similar than I thought_, Reyna thought to herself.

Her mind wandered again, this time to Jason. He was a really good partner for her praetor duties, and for a while she thought she had a crush on him. But he had never made her feel happy, and she had never _laughed _with Jason. She thought about when he walked off the ship with that daughter-of-Aphrodite girl, and remembered how happy he had looked. Is that how it was supposed to be when you loved someone? Did that mean that she loved... Leo?

Reyna abruptly stood up from her desk. She wasn't thinking as she opened her door and walked outside. All she knew was that meeting Leo had changed her, and she had to see him again.

Leo POV:

_Beautiful_, Leo scowled at the ground as he headed back to the guest cabins. She thought his flaming hands were beautiful. What was she thinking?

Leo opened the door to his cabin but then closed it again and went instead to the workshop next door. He needed time to think, and the best place to do that was alone on his workbench.

"Beautiful," Leo muttered to himself, "Ha!" he yelled, kicking the wall as he entered the workshop. "You think fire is beautiful, huh Reyna? Well you're wrong! Fire is dangerous! Fire is evil! Fire- Fire is a fatal weapon that does nothing-but-harm!" He screamed into the empty room, punching the workbench with every word. He grabbed the nearest screwdriver and smashed it against the work table. "You think it's oh-so-amazing to have a cursed weapon that you can't control? Cursed flames that could kill _millions_ of people! Ha!" he ripped a pile of tools off of a shelf and heard the satisfying crash as they hit the ground. "You can't even begin to understand what it's like!" Leo could feel himself heating up. "You don't know what you're talking about!" he screamed on the top of his lungs, feeling angry tears stream down his face, "YOU-DON'T-KNOW-ANYTHING!" He couldn't restrain himself anymore and let his entire body ignite and burst into flame. Through the hot flames surrounding him, he saw someone in the doorway, tentatively peeking their head into the room.


	3. Chapter 3

Reyna POV:

Reyna had checked his cabin, but he wasn't there. All of a sudden she had heard a huge crash from the workshop next door, and she ran over to see what was going on. As she approached the door she heard someone yelling angrily.

"You don't know what you're talking about!" It was Leo. "YOU-DON'T-KNOW-ANYTHING!" he screamed. She felt like this was something that she should not be witnessing, but despite herself, she tentatively peeked her head through the door and saw the most incredible sight. Leo was completely surrounded by flames. No, she realized, the flames were coming _from him_. He had become a human ball of fire.

She saw him make eye contact with her and the flames immediately disappeared. Was he really that powerful? The flame he had shown her earlier, that she had thought was so remarkable, now looked weak in comparison.

With the flames gone, she could see that he had been crying, and she suddenly felt very uncomfortable and like she should not be there.

"I- um-I couldn't sleep and I- I wanted to see if you were still awake," she said awkwardly.

He ran his hands through his messy hair, looking tired and helpless, and sat down on the floor against the wall.

She had definitely walked in on something she had no business knowing about. "I'm sorry. I'll leave you alone. I'll just-" she began heading out the door.

"No."

She paused and turned to look at him. "Stay. Please. I actually... I don't want to be alone right now," he said. Reyna still didn't feel like she should stay, but he was looking at her so pleadingly that she couldn't refuse. She went over and sat down next to him.

Reyna thought about what he had said earlier. He seemed so different than before when he was laughing and joking around. Now, as she watched his sad, anxious face, she realized that this was his serious side, the one that he never showed anyone. Then a thought occurred to her.

"Was it something I said? Earlier?" she asked him quietly.

He closed his eyes and his face darkened. "It isn't you Reyna, I promise. Its... me." he took a breath. "Everyone thinks my fire abilities are so cool. They only know the advantages. They don't understand how terrible fire really is and how horrible the consequences are of using it. It's not cool. It's not cool at all. It's dangerous and scary. I can tell you, my fire abilities are definitely not something I'm proud of."

He turned to look at her. "Reyna?" he asked, "Can I... trust you?"

Reyna didn't know why she was so sure, but she nodded, thinking how much she felt like _she_ could trust _him_.

"I'm going to tell you something that I've never told anyone," he told her. Reyna had the feeling he wasn't used to this, so she took his hand to comfort him. "Okay," she said quietly.

He took another breath and began to tell his story.

Leo POV:

Leo told her everything. He told her about Tia Callida and all of the times she let him play with the fire. He told her about how angry his mother would get when she got home. Then he finally told her about the night when the evil earth woman caused him to burn his house down and kill his mother inside it.

At this point he was outright crying and couldn't keep going. Reyna had been holding his hand the whole time, and she let him cry on her shoulder.

When he finally calmed down, he saw that Reyna had been crying too. "Oh Reyna. I'm sorry you had to listen to that. I didn't mean to upset you," he apologized, suddenly feeling bad.

"No it's really okay," she said. "I'm glad you told me. I think it will help you." She squeezed his hand.

Leo hoped it would help too, but he didn't know how he could stop the guilt he felt every time he used the fire.

"It feels like a curse," he told her, "What did I ever do that made my father think I should have the ability to do so much evil?"

"You shouldn't think of it like that," Reyna said.

"How can I not? This weapon," he held up his hands, "is the reason my own mother is dead," he said, his voice cracking.

"I know, Leo," she said, "But that was not all your fault, and you know it. Like you said, it's a weapon. As a daughter of the war goddess, I know about weapons. And you have to understand that weapons are not only used for evil," she leaned forward, "they are also used for good."

Leo could see what she meant, but he was still doubtful of her logic. Weapons were created to kill things. How could that be good?

"Think of it this way," she continued, "When you have a machine, a car let's say," Leo smiled at her Hephaestus-ish analogy, "you use the car to get places more efficiently."

"But cars are good," Leo argued.

"Exactly. But what happens when you get into an accident? You could die, Leo, every time you go anywhere in a car."

Leo frowned. "Are you trying to make me dislike cars?"

"No, I'm trying to make you understand that weapons were created for _good_ things. They were created for defense against evil. And even though they can be abused and used carelessly, that isn't their purpose." She took his hands in hers. "This is a weapon. It's a very powerful weapon. But when it's in the right hands, which it is," she said pointedly, "It can save the world." Leo thought about what she said, and realized that it was true. Hadn't he saved his friends from the Cyclopes with fire? He had to kill the monster, but it was in defense.

"I trust you, Leo," Reyna told him. "You have complete control over what you do with the fire. You get to decide whether it will be used for good or for evil. That's why your father gave you this gift, because he knew you would use it well. And I know that with your powerful weapon you will help the demigods win the war that is coming."

Leo had never had anyone tell him that before. She had so much faith in him. There was something different about Reyna that Leo had never seen in anyone else. Whatever it was, it gave Leo a self-confidence that he had never felt before. It gave him a new kind of hope that this quest the prophecy had predicted could maybe work out how they wanted it to.

"Thank you," he finally said, "That was really... helpful."

Then Reyna did something else that Leo was not expecting. She hugged him. "You're welcome," she said. She got up and headed back to the door. Then she stopped and turned back around. "I really did have fun tonight, playing cards," she smiled, "Maybe... we could do that again sometime?"

Leo smiled back, "Sure thing," he said, "Be prepared to lose."

"Ha! Really likely," she laughed, "See you tomorrow Leo," she said, and Leo watched her as she headed back to her cabin.

**I know its cheesy :) That's what I do best! This is all I've got so far... I need to figure out what I want to have happen next. I want it to be romantic but it has to be really dramatic and spontaneous... I'll take any suggestions!**


	4. Chapter 4

Reyna POV:

The next day at breakfast, Reyna couldn't get her mind off of what had happened the night before. She had literally known him for less than 24 hours, and yet she felt like she knew Leo better than she had known anyone in her entire life. How did that happen? Reyna didn't even think that was possible.

Leo had spilled his entire life to her. He had opened up to her and trusted her with something he had never told anyone before. _Why?_ Reyna wondered. That was the one thing she did not understand. Why had he trusted her? What had he seen in her that made him so sure he _could_ trust her? But what bothered her the most about it was, why did _she_ trust _him_?

Reyna closed her eyes and remembered his tired, anxious face. His situation was just as messed up as hers was. He had told her his story, and it made her feel like she owed him a little of her own story in return. Maybe she should tell him something. He deserved to know.

When she opened her eyes again she saw that Leo had walked in and he was watching her. Their eyes locked and he gave her a small, grateful smile. She smiled back and that was when a realization hit her. _She didn't want him to leave_. He and the other six demigods of the prophecy were going to leave for their quest today and she wasn't ready for him to go. It had been on her mind all morning. She felt happy with him, and the thought of him leaving her alone at the camp made her stomach flip. _Stop!_ She scolded herself. _You were fine before you knew him!_

But that was before. Now, it was as if he had snatched her out of her dark hiding place and exposed her to the rest of the world, and she felt like she could never go back. He had a strong hold on her, and as much as she fought, she wasn't able to break it.

She reluctantly got up to go sit with him and the six other members of the prophecy. She had to discuss with them the plan and help them prepare for their journey to Rome.

Leo POV:

As he watched her walk confidently towards them, Leo's heart immediately sped up. Wow she was pretty. How could he not have noticed before? She held her head high and had a strong don't-mess-with-me look that was just his style. Her long thick hair gently fell down her shoulders giving her an elegance that he thought was beautiful. The best part was her eyes. He was so captivated by her deep brown eyes that bore straight into him like a laser.

Ever since last night, Leo could not stop thinking about her. Somehow, she had managed to pull everything out of him, all of the emotions he had been holding in for his entire life. There was something special about her, and Leo could not figure out what it was.

So as she headed towards their table, he quickly pulled out some wires from his tool belt to fiddle with to hide his nerves. _Stay calm,_ he told himself. He was not in the mood to start a fire because of some girl, right before he was going on a quest that would most likely kill him.

"I need to talk to all of you," Reyna said quietly, "Privately."

They got up discreetly from their table and followed Reyna to her cabin where they could finish planning for the trip. They had done most of the packing and the preparations last night because Reyna had wanted them to get an early start.

Leo, Jason, Piper, Frank, Hazel, Percy, and Annabeth filed into her cabin and Reyna closed the door, turning to them.

"Are you all one-hundred percent ready to go?" she asked.

They all nodded.

"Your weapons? Armor? Food? Clothes?"

"Toothbrush?" Leo joked, trying to lighten the mood. He felt like her intensity was making everyone more nervous than they already were.

She gave Leo a dirty but amused look, and continued. "And you all know the plan?"

They nodded again.

"Just remember that once you are half way across the Atlantic, you are no longer in the territory of the gods, and they cannot reach you. They cannot help you. We will do our best to defend the camp as long as you are gone, but everyone should expect monster attacks at any time. If anything happens..." she said uneasily. Her eyes moved across each one of them, and finally landed on Leo. "Send us your signal as soon as possible, and we will send help."

Leo nodded to show her that he understood. He had built a mechanical bird that could carry letters to and from camp, and it would act as their messenger.

She let out a breath. "Okay. We need to get you in the air as soon as possible, so why don't you go get your ship ready."

"We're on it," Percy said, grabbing Annabeth and heading towards the door.

"I'll go help them out," Jason said. "They're gonna need it." He went out after them.

"Come on you guys," Piper said to the other three who were left, "Let's go get our stuff onto the ship."

Hazel and Frank headed out with Piper to get their stuff, and Leo was about to follow them, when he felt a hand on his arm. Leo paused, and when he turned around he saw Reyna looking at him with wide eyes and an urgent look that said, _I need to talk to you_.

"Um, you guys go ahead of me," Leo said to the others, "I, uh, I think I forgot something. I'll catch up to you in a sec."

The others nodded and left the cabin. As soon as the door closed, he turned to look at Reyna, and her entire face transformed. It was as if she had been wearing a mask that entire time and only then did she pull it off to reveal her true face. She went from being the calm and controlled leader to completely breaking down and having an absolute panic attack.

"Oh my gods, Leo, how are we going to do this?" she asked, leaning against the closed door. "You're going to be so far away and I'm going to have to manage the entire camp alone and I'm supposed to be in charge but I do don't feel confident in this plan at all and I don't know if it will work and-"

"Reyna. Reyna!" He said shaking her, trying to calm her down, "Breathe!" She was crying. Those beautiful, intense eyes were crying, and that made Leo more worried than anything.

"Leo," she said, "I'm- I'm scared."

She was looking at him so desperately. How was this possible? The strong, determined fighter that he had only met the other day was crying, and she was asking _him_ for help. _Him!_ No one had ever come to him for anything this serious. Why would they? He was the jokester, the prankster, the comic relief. He honestly didn't understand what he could have done, but seeing her like this pained him in a way that he had never felt about anyone before.

"I know," he told her gently, "I'm scared too."

"I just- I'm supposed to be the leader of this camp," she said, "and everyone is always looking to me to make decisions. I'm expected to be strong and fearless all the time, and never be afraid to fight. But now you and Jason and Percy and all of you are leaving on this quest, and I'll be the only praetor at camp. I have to lead thousands of demigods in a huge battle all by myself, and- Leo, I don't know if I can do it."

"_Yes you can_," Leo told her. "Reyna, of course you're scared; _everyone's_ scared. But you are the most capable of anybody fighting in this war. You are a leader. You are a warrior! I know you can do this. You were _made_ to do this. Please, Reyna," he begged. He just had to get her to stop crying. "You have to have a little more confidence in yourself. The seven of us are going on a quest to save the world, and we are putting you in charge of camp because we know you can handle the job."

"Are- are you sure?" she asked.

"Yes!" he said, throwing his arms up. "You weren't made praetor for nothing."

Leo wanted her to understand his point of view so badly. If only she could see what he saw in her and how much he cared about her. He thought she was amazing. Leo hated seeing such an incredibly strong, beautiful girl like this. She so did not deserve it! Had she never told anyone about this before? Not even Jason?

Reyna searched his face and then relaxed. Leo thought she looked tired and worn out from all of the stress she had been putting on herself. It made him feel terrible. Looking at her, he realized how much he really _did_ care about her. At that moment he swore he would do absolutely anything for her.

Reyna's expression suddenly became worried again, and Leo had a sudden urge to touch her, and wipe away all of those anxiety lines on her forehead. _Woah there_, Leo stopped himself, _snap out of it and control yourself_.

"I'll be worried about you," she said quietly. Somehow, Leo knew that she didn't mean _you_ as in the seven of them, but _you_ as in just him. "Please just- be careful?" she asked.

Leo nodded. "I will," he promised.

"Don't- don't die," she whispered almost silently, wincing at the last word.

"Only if you promise not to get your own self killed," he answered seriously.

There was a knock at the door. "Are you coming Repair Boy?" they heard Piper call from outside.

"Yeah I'll be right out!" Leo called back. He turned back to Reyna. "Please promise me you will fight hard, never give up, and not get yourself killed," he said quickly, feeling desperate. He couldn't stand the thought of her dying. She was the only person he had ever met who didn't make him feel worthless.

She hesitated. "I need you to stay alive." Leo insisted. "Promise me."

"I promise," she finally said.

Leo relaxed. "You can do it," he told her again. "You are going to be okay."

"Okay," she said, a small hint of a smile playing across her face.

Leo knew he needed to go, so he squeezed her shoulder and he headed to the door. "Leo," Reyna stopped him and he turned back to look at her. "Thank you," she said.

"No problem," Leo replied, trying to be cheerful. She opened her mouth to say more, but closed it again. "Good luck, Warrior," Leo said smiling as he opened the door.

"You too, Fire Guy." She gave him a small smile back, and Leo went out to the ship.

Reyna POV:

_No! Don't leave!_ Reyna wanted to scream at him as the door closed. She immediately broke down again. _I love you_.

She felt like someone had ripped her heart out of her chest. She wanted to kick herself. _That was your chance_, she thought. That was her one chance to tell him how she felt and she missed it. She'd chickened out. Now he'll never know. Leo was more than likely to never come back and he would never know that she loved him.

She sat down on the floor and cried into her hands. Gods, how she loved how it felt when his hands were on her shoulders. She wished he would have held her closer. She wanted to kiss him goodbye. She wanted to be like one of those heroic love stories where the heroine kisses the hero and they live happily ever after. Of course she knew that would never happen. Life never worked out that way.

Reyna couldn't help but hope that might happen. She pictured his worried face. Did he care about her as much as she cared about him? She wanted to believe that. Gods she was such a mess. Why did this have to happen now?

He had told her she was a warrior. A leader. He fully believed that she was able to lead a battle as important and as dangerous as the one that was coming. So why couldn't she convince herself it was true?

_He won't be there_, she answered her own question. Reyna got up and looked out the window. She saw Leo at the wheel and Percy working the ropes. Annabeth and Hazel were helping him, and Jason and Frank were up at the lookout post.

She had promised that she wouldn't let herself get killed. If only she could know that Leo wouldn't get himself killed.

She didn't know that, but she would make sure to keep on fighting as hard as she could until she did know.

**Ok so now I really don't know what's gonna happen next... Idk what Rick Riordan wants to have happen on the quest! He probably won't even make the quest of the prophecy in the next book so it's all just kinda rushed... *Sigh* Fluff can only go so far... **

**I love Leyna though and I'm so obsessed with Leo and his awesomeness! HUGE Leo fan right here! ;D 3**

**So anyway, there are so many holes in the plot that the fluff is hard to fit in... and keep it accurate-ish. I might just skip ahead to the end of the war and put some Leyna fluff at the end there... Please review and I love suggestions!**


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